To Return to Love
by PrincessMelissa83
Summary: [To Begin Again sequel] Kagome and Inuyasha are reunited, but things are not as easy as they hoped. They must prove that their love is strong enough to alter the lines of fate. After all, all the best things are worth fighting for.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: The sequel with shorter chapters! Aren't you happy?

**Scroll One: Separation**

Kagome swept the leaves from the temple steps and sighed, feeling an overwhelming sense of depression wash over her. Why had things happened the way they had? Why was she cursed to not know what happened to her own husband and her friends?

She had paused in her movements and drifted off into thought. How had they ended up here? She was twenty-six and working as a shrine maiden, something she had never thought to be. When she had gotten into high school she had thought that she would go to college and become a doctor…after all she had experience in stitching people up. Or perhaps she would go to college to become a teacher. She'd always loved children.

But she'd never gone to college. She was seventeen when they'd finally gotten the Shikon no Tama completed and killed Naraku and Kikyo was resting in peace. They had no way of knowing how to purify the tama without making a pure wish and no one had been able to come up with a wish that would be considered pure enough to purify it. So they had protected it.

When she was eighteen, Inuyasha finally worked up the nerve to ask her to be his wife. She'd decided to become a miko, to take Kaede's place in later years. They built a home just down from Kaede's and they lived there for three years. They'd had a baby, a little girl that they loved. For three years she thought nothing would change. They were together, they were a family and they were happy.

And then Hana had gotten sick and Inuyasha had sent her to her mother's era to see the pediatrician. She'd thought he would meet her there when the doctor was running late, but he'd been no where to be found when she returned home. She'd left Hana with her mother and attempted to go through the well to see why he hadn't come, but her decent had come to a crashing halt when she hit the dirt covered bottom of the well. That had been three years ago.

Voices reached her from below and pulled her from her stupor. Once more she began to sweep the leaves and waited for her daughter to come up the steps.

"Come on, Hana-chan, you have to come to the picnic. It won't be any fun without you," a young girl's voice drifted up to her.

"But my Papa isn't here, Emiko," Hana's voice reached her and Kagome sighed. "I can't go to a Father Daughter Picnic without a papa."

"You could always take Souta." That voice was older and matched the perky quality of the first one.

When the figures came into view, Kagome put a smile on. "Hey girls," she greeted cheerfully. "Thanks for walking her home, Eri-chan. Now, what's this about a picnic?"

Eri patted her own daughter on the shoulder and nudged them towards the shrine courtyard. "Why don't the two of you go play while Kagome-chan and I visit? I'll call you when we're done, Emiko."

The girls ran off and Eri sighed. "You know I don't mind walking Hana. It's on the way to my house and she and Emiko are such good friends." She stretched and sat on the steps, patting the stone next to her for Kagome to sit also.

When she had, Eri continued. "The first grade class is giving a picnic for fathers and daughters. They're learning about family or something like that. Hana got a little upset at school when she found out about it and Emiko's been trying to cheer her up ever since. We've been trying to tell her that it's okay that Inuyasha isn't here, that she can take Souta or Higarashi-oujii-san or your father. She could even go with Ryu and Emiko if she wanted to. I don't think we've convinced her though."

Kagome nodded. "Thanks for trying, Eri-chan." She smiled sadly. "She misses her father even though she doesn't really remember him. It's been so long."

"I know." Eri smiled sympathetically and patted her friend's shoulder before standing up. "Well, I'd better collect my child and head home. Ryu wants me to go to some business party with him and I have to get Emi-chan to the babysitter."

"Have fun," Kagome called over her shoulder as her fingers came up to fidget with the little pinkish pearl at her neck.

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_I miss you, Inuyasha. I miss you so much._ Kagome stood, barefoot, on the cobblestone courtyard that surrounded the Goshinboku. The skirt of her calf length sundress blew against her legs in the slight breeze and even though it was a warm day, she shivered, wrapping her arms around herself to try and stop the chills that were coming from within.

He still lived, she knew that much. Since they had married, she was connected to him in a whole new level which allowed the two of them to know when the other was in danger or, kami forbid, gone. But she had not felt a break in their link so she knew he still lived. At least that much was a comfort.

"Mama!" A shrill little voice called from the house, sending out a distressed tone which ended in a sob. "Souta says I can't play Barbie on the 'puter!" Said voice was coming from the sliding door to her right as a dark haired child stood with her hands on her hips, tears pooling in her golden eyes. "He said it's his 'puter and I can't play."

Kagome closed her eyes and took a deep breath, preparing herself for what was to come next. "Hana, haven't you already used the computer once today?" She asked approaching the now crying child and kneeling down in front of her.

The similarities between woman and child were great. Both had the same natural wavy hair, but the girl's was much lighter and they both had the same medium complexion. The only differences to be seen was that the child's ears pointed, like an elf's, and she saw the world through amber eyes instead of steel blue. Those trait's the girl had gotten from her father. All in all, Hana was her father's daughter. "Perhaps Souta has some work that he had to do."

"Nuh-uh, he just don't wanna let me use it." Hana crossed her arms in a pout. Kagome sighed and picked her up, balancing the six year old's weight on one hip while she went in the house and found her brother hunched over a laptop the two of them had pooled their money into buying.

"Souta, did you tell Hana that she couldn't use the computer anymore and that it was yours?" She highly doubted something so childish would have come from her 'too mature for his age' brother, but she could only appease her daughter by asking.

"Nee-chan, I've got this _huge_ history project due in three days and I'm no where _near_ finished. I've _gotta_ have the computer to type up my essay. This paper counts as 25 of my final exam," he explained, looking up from his screen, his eyes pleading with her to understand. And she did. She _really_ did. "Hana was begging to play some game and I told her she couldn't right now, that I needed it for myself."

Kagome nodded. "Well, get to work Souta. If you need any help, call me. I'll try to keep Hana out of your hair. I know what it's like to have someone distracting you from your work…_believe_ me, I know."

"Inu-no-nii-chan was pretty good at that, ne?"

Her smile was sad this time. "Yeah, he was." She bounced the girl on her hip and turned her head back towards the child's room. "Taishou Hana, you know better than to tell fibs. I might have barged in there and started yelling at Souta when he did nothing wrong. He has school work that he has to do and he didn't say you couldn't ever use the computer again…you just can't right now."

Hana wrapped her arms around Kagome's neck and buried her face in her shoulder. "I know, Mama, I'm sorry." Her voice was small and pitiful, trying to earn some sort of pity, but Kagome knew better and was having none of it. She set her daughter on the bed and knelt in front of her, preparing another speech about honesty and how noble people didn't lie and wasn't she noble what with her oijii-sama being a tai youkai and her obaa-sama being a princess?

But Hana beat her to it and spoke first. "Mama? Where's Papa? When can we go home?"

Kagome closed her eyes and counted to ten, forcing her tears back where they belonged. She would not cry in front of Hana, but she couldn't lie to the child either - not when she had been about to speak about honesty and noble blood.

"I don't know, Hana…I just don't know. I don't know if we can." She cupped the girl's cheek, brushing her hair out of her face. "But he's always with us, you know that. He'll never completely leave us. You are a part of him…his child…his heart and that's a connection no one can sever and you know the dagger he made for you is a part of him as well. It was made from his own fang and it connects you to him. The Goshinboku, the Shikon no Tama, my wedding rings - all of them are a link in the chain that connects the three of us together. Inuyasha will never fully leave us."

"I miss Papa…" She hugged her mother, holding tightly to her neck and Kagome pulled her into her lap.

"I know you do, baby…I do too." _But as long as you remember him…I won't let you forget him, no matter how long it takes for us to be together again._

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Hana woke up in the middle of the night, crying. She'd been dreaming about her father once more, the only memory she could seem to hold on to. His image in her mind was blurry, she could just make out the red material of his kimono as he hugged her to him and then kissed her mother before everything went dark and they climbed out in the well house.

She climbed out of bed and went to the bookshelf in her room which had been her uncle Souta's before he moved into the university. On one shelf, kept in a small wooden box and wrapped in a velvet bag was a small silver dagger, intricately designed with sakura petals on the blade and a sakura blossom on each side of the silver hilt. The dagger was a gift from her father, Inuyasha after her birth. It was made by the great sword forging youkai, Toutousai, from one of Inuyasha's own fangs. The flower petals and blossom designs were a tribute to her name, which he had picked - Hana.

She opened the case and took out the pouch, pulling the dagger out carefully to inspect it. There was a picture of her father in a frame next to the box and she picked it up, looked at it and then looked at the mirror at herself.

Was she like her papa?

She had golden eyes, just like his. Everyone was always telling her how pretty they were. Her hair was dark like her mama's, but was long like her papa's and her nose was like his. Mama had always said that her papa, because he was hanyou, had doggy ears, but her ears were human. He was also supposed to have fangs and claws. She opened her mouth to look at her teeth and saw that her canines were longer than her mother's, but not so sharp as she imagined an inu youkai's to be and her nails had been cut short.

This was something Hana did often. Kagome had shown her pictures of the inu hanyou that had fathered her and had helped her to compare herself with him to show that she had pieces of her father with her every time she looked in the mirror. But sometimes that just wasn't enough.

The little girl dug through the night table beside her bed and came out with a flashlight Jii-chan had given her when she had nightmares. She took that and the pouch containing her dagger and opened her bedroom door, peeking out.

"Mrow?"

The sound from the foot of her bed drew her attention back to her room and the calico kitten that was curled up at the foot of her bed. "I just wanna be close to papa," she explained in a quiet whisper. The kitten yawned and stretched, jumping down to join her as if to say she were coming too. "Alright, but we have to be quiet. Mama'll get mad if we leave the house."

The two slipped down the stairs and out the door into the shrine courtyard without making any noise. Outside she turned the flashlight on and shined it on the Goshinboku. "Did I ever tell you 'bout my papa?" She asked the kitten who blinked up at her. "My papa is Inuyasha, the son of a great inu youkai and a beautiful hime. That makes me special because papa was a hanyou, but we can't tell nobody, okay Lin? We have to keep that a secret."

The cat bobbed its head as if to agree and the child grinned. "Goshinboku is really 'portant to Papa 'cause that's where Mama first found him. Some stupid miko pinned him to the tree with a magic arrow and Mama had to get him free."

She brushed a few dark gray strands of hair from her face. "Then Mama was put in charge of the Shikon no Tama, a really special jewel that I'll have to protect one day. But she broke it and they had to look for the shards. That's how they met Aunt Sango and Uncle Miroku and Shippou-nii-chan."

She left the Goshinboku and walked across the cobblestone yard to the doors of the well house. "Mama and Papa were from different times so Mama had to travel to Sengoku Jidai to see Papa. You know how she did it?"

"Mreow?"

The well house doors slid open. It wasn't the first time Inuyasha's daughter had broken the rules and slipped out of the house at night. And it wasn't the first time she'd gone into the forbidden well house. Like her father before her, she seldom thought the rules applied to her.

"On her birthday, Buyo-no-baka went in the well house and Mama went after him. When she tried to get Baka Buyo out, she fell down the well." Her bare feet made no sound as she and the kitten descended the steps into the darkness, the only light coming from her flashlight and she leaned against the edge of the well, looking down into the depths.

"Mama said it was like floating." The lace on her night gown cuffs were starting to tickle her hands and she set the flashlight on the edge of the well to push her sleeves up.

Something startled Lin and the kitten hissed, jumping to the lip of the well, knocking the flashlight into the bottom as she did so. Hana yelped in surprise and whimpered when she realized her only means of light was all the way down at the bottom of the well and she would have to climb the old ladder down there to get it so that no one would know she was in there without permission.

Had she not stepped on the hem of her pink fleece nightgown several rungs from the bottom, she would have been fine, but her foot slipped and she lost her balance, falling backwards. The bag containing the dagger almost slid from her arm, but she managed to hold onto it as a feeling of weightlessness came over her and she was caught up in a flash of blue light.

The child landed on the ground with an _umph_ and looked up at the dark sky.


	2. Chapter 2

**Scroll Two: The Return**

Ayame never argued with her mate as to why he took the routes that he did. Naraku was dead, but still he insisted on moving their tiny tribe around like a bunch of nomads instead of picking a den and staying there.

_I guess after so many years of running it gets in the blood…_ she thought with a mental shrug. Oh well. As long as he allowed her to follow him, she didn't care where they went.

"Otou-san? I'm tired," whined their oldest pup. "Can we stop now?" He was seven and far surpassed his sister and brother in vitality and energy, but even he ran out of steam eventually. The ookami youkai stopped and waited for Ginta and Hakkaku to catch up to them.

"It is late, love," Ayame said softly. "They're just pups. They don't have the same endurance you do."

That seemed to placate him a bit. "We're near the mutt's village. It should be safe enough to stop here," he relented finally. "We'll wait until sunup and then start heading towards the mountains again."

At that Ayame brightened. "The mountains? We're going to visit the pack? Are we going to stay this time?" She smiled hopefully, hands clasped together under her chin.

"Yeah, we're staying for a while. The boys need to learn pack order," he explained. "As princes of both our tribes, they'll be expected to take over when they're grown." He opened his mouth to say more, but was cut off by a loud and terror filled wail.

"_**MAMA! MAMA! MAMA!"**_

The four adult ookami looked at one another. "Hakkaku. Ginta, stay here and watch over Ayame and the pups. I'm going to see what's going on." Before they could argue he sped off into the night towards the sound. It had come from the direction of the dog turd's village.

"Please! Someone! Please! Help me!" The cry was getting closer and more desperate, laced with tears. It sounded to him like the cry of a child, almost like his daughter would give when she tired of her brothers' constant teasing. "Souta! Obaa-chan? Jii-chan? MAMA!"

He could hear her sobs now as he approached the clearing with Kagome's well. In fact it seemed to be coming from within her well. He slowed to a stop and sniffed the air, assessing the situation. The scent that assaulted his nose was of jasmine and lavender, familiar and yet strangely different. It held the same tones as Kagome's scent, but with undertones similar to the mutt and yet, at the same time, was distinctively individual.

But that was the only scent that reached him. There were no other youkai around and nothing that seemed to pose an immediate danger. So why was the child crying? He slowly approached the well and felt like slapping himself on the forehead. Of course the kid was wailing. She, the scent was definitely feminine, was in the bottom of the well.

"Please! I want outta here! I wanna go home!" Her words were broken and thick with tears.

He peered down into the well to find the little girl curled up, wearing a strange looking pink kimono, her knees drawn up to her chest and her head lying on her knees as she cried. She didn't see him.

"Hey, kid!" He called softly and her head shot up. Golden eyes seemed to catch a little moonlight and appeared to glow as she looked at him, silhouetted by the moon that was behind him. Fear tainted her scent and he mentally winced. "No, don't get scared. It's okay, kid. I'm just gonna get you outta there."

She made no answer and didn't move to get up as he leapt over the edge of the well and landed in a crouch beside her. "Get on my back and hold onto my shoulders. I'm not gonna hurt you. I got a little girl of my own, you know? She's a real pretty thing, younger than you are."

Hana looked at him for a long moment and then, seeming to decide he was no threat, stood and did as instructed, climbing onto his back and wrapping her arms securely around his neck. In one great leap he had her out of the well and was crouching on the grass so that she could get down. When she was on the ground, he let her back up away from him and made no move to touch her. "Where are your parents, kid?"

This started a new set of tears to roll silently down her chubby cheeks. "I don't know," she told him in a whisper. "Mama…Souta-chan…Obaa-chan…Jii-chan…I don't know…"

Kami he hated it when kids cried! It wouldn't have bothered him before but now he had kids of his own and he hated it. "No, don't cry…we'll find 'em. What about your house? Where's your home?"

She swiped at her eyes with her fists and looked around before falling once more into quiet sobs. "It's s'posed to be right there…where'd it go?" She pointed in the direction the Higarashi shrine house had stood but there were only trees.

"What's your name, kid?"

"T-Taishou…H-hana," she sobbed.

Taishou? That was an odd name. He sniffed the air once more, realizing something he'd missed before. This kid wasn't human. She wasn't youkai and she wasn't hanyou, but she wasn't completely human either. "Well, now, Hana…My name's Kouga. Maybe I can help you find your parents. What are their names? Do you know that?"

The girl sniffled and looked at him, hope shining in her golden eyes. "Mama's name is Kagome. She lives at the shrine with Jii-chan and Obaa-chan and Souta-chan, but he goes to university," she said that last word slowly, making sure to pronounce it correctly, "and Papa don't live there, but Mama says that he's kinda there still. My papa is a great hanyou named Inuyasha."

Kouga's eyes widened and he bit his bottom lip to keep from saying something that would make her start crying again now that she seemed to have calmed. This was the mutt's long lost kid.

Barely containing his laughter he knelt in front of her. "A great hanyou, huh? Well, then, things aren't so bad are they, Hana-chan?" He asked with a slight chuckle in his voice. "I happen to be a friend of your ofukuro and your chichi-ue. Well, not so much so with your chichi-ue, but I do know him."

Her eyes lit up once more and she leaned towards him. "Really? You know Papa? Is he here?"

"Yeah, I know him. He's here, too." He smiled at her. "I'll take you to him. Get on my back again and I'll carry you. It's not far."

Hana squealed with joy and jumped on the ookami's back, grasping him around the shoulders while he brought his hands back to support her legs and keep her from falling while he ran towards Inuyasha's village. She giggled when he jumped and seemingly flew through the air, skirting around the houses to keep people from panicking even though it was so late that most were asleep and would never have known he was there.

He came to a stop when he was in front of a larger looking home with a sliding door instead of a reed flap like most of the houses. It seemed everyone inside was asleep and he hesitated for only a second before approaching and knocking on the wood that framed the door.

"Oi! Someone come get this cub offa me!"

Kouga's grunt at her door awakened Sango and she rubbed her eyes clear of the sleep filled haze. With a frown of disapproval, she leaned over the basinet and looked in on her child to make sure the boy still slept.

"Oi! Is anyone home?"

The second exclamation was louder than the first and she feared he'd wake up the entire village…and they would not be happy seeing an ookami youkai in their village while their resident hanyou was off in the woods somewhere.

"I'm here," she stated angrily, sliding the door back so that she could look out at the midnight darkness to the shadowed figure she knew to be Kouga. Behind her appeared a still short, but slightly order looking kitsune, half dressed and disheveled.

"Kouga," the kid rasped, barely suppressing a yawn, "what're you doing here at this hour? Inuyasha isn't here, you know."

The wolf prince grunted. "Yeah, I know. I went by that old priestess' hut and his before coming here. He ain't been there in ages." He shifted something on his back and growled softly when that something pulled at his hair.

"He sleeps here or out in the woods now, Kouga." She frowned and glared at him, placing both hands on her hips. "What do you want? Do you know what time it is? And yelling at my doorstep this late? My child is asleep in there and if you wake him, kami help me, I'll make you regret the day you were born."

He chuckled. He'd always liked the taijiya despite her occupation. She had a sarcastic, independent streak in her that he had to admire. "Ayame and my cubs were just passing through. I haven't seen the mutt around lately so I thought I'd check in on him - for Kagome. That's when I heard yelling coming from that old well." He shifted the cargo on his back again and knelt down to the ground. "Okay kid, you gotta get off now."

There was movement and another figure disentangled itself from the ookami, coming to stand beside him. Sango could just make out the silhouette of a young girl. "When I went to check it out I found _this _sitting at the bottom crying." He put a hand on the girl's back and nudged her forward. "It's the mutt's kid."

Sango gasped. How? The well had closed off and no one was able to come through. It'd been sealed for years now…

"Kami-sama…And Inuyasha's not here…" She shook her head and knelt so she would be eyelevel with the girl. "Come here, Hana-chan, and let me get a good look at you."

She smiled at the girl though the fire at her back cast a shadow over her face, hiding it from view. "I know you probably don't remember me, but I'm your aunt Sango. Did your Mama ever tell you about me? Come on in and I'll get you warmed up while we try and figure out how to find your Papa."

Cautiously Hana moved across the grass, her slippers dragging in the dirt, before she was engulfed in Sango's embrace. It felt so much like her mother's that for a moment she had tears welling in her eyes again.

"Kouga-kun, Inuyasha and Miroku left a few days ago to take care of some youkai that was attacking a village. It was only a few day's walk from here, but they haven't made it back yet. They're probably camped out in the woods not far from here," Sango said over the girl's head. "I think it's important that Inuyasha get here as soon as possible. Would you…?"

The ookami made a face. "You want me to go get him? I don't think he'll be very cooperative with me."

"Please, Kouga? I'd go, but I have to take care of the baby and Shippou and now Hana. I'd send Kirara, but she went with them." She lifted pleading eyes to him and started to gently rub circles on Hana's back as the girl got more comfortable and seemed to be ready to fall asleep.

Hana looked up at Kouga and then to Sango. "Where's my papa? Kouga-san said that my papa was here." Her face was the picture of innocence as she turned her golden gaze back at Kouga. "I want my papa. Where's my papa?"

Kouga frowned, his barriers breaking down. She was a little older than his own daughter, but held that same childish innocence and hope. Despite the fact that her eyes were those of the hanyou, everything about her appearance screamed that she was Kagome's daughter and he'd had a hard time telling Kagome no to anything. "He ain't back yet, but you stay here with Sango and I'll go get him."

Sango smiled. "Thanks, Kouga-kun," she said softly before taking Hana's hand in hers and leading her into the house. "Do you remember your brother, Shippou? I'm sure your mama told you about him."

The little girl nodded her head. Kagome had told her stories about her family in Sengoku Jidai. "Is he really my brother? Mama told me 'bout him." She pouted and looked at the half dressed boy with loose red hair that the woman had indicated as Shippou before looking back at her. "Mama told me stories 'bout Uncle Miroku and Aunt Sango and Shippou-nii-chan all the time."

"Did she? Well, I'm glad she hasn't forgotten us."

"You can sleep in my bed," the kitsune offered, bounding to the girl's side and leading her to the mat he usually slept on. "You're my little sister and it's my duty to take care of you 'till Inuyasha gets back."

Hana nodded and kissed his cheek before she laid down on the pallet. Sango bit her cheek to keep from giggling at the fox child's behavior and pulled the blanket up to the girl's chin. Shippou settled beside her, sitting cross legged on the floor. The inu hanyou had rubbed off on him a great deal.

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Kagome woke up early and stretched. She'd promised to take Hana shopping for a dress to wear to the Father Daughter Picnic since the child had finally agreed to take Souta. She threw the covers off of her and grabbed the blue robe that matched her blue satin night gown and threw it over her shoulders before going across the hall to her old room which now belonged to her daughter since Souta actually slept at the university dorm - even if he did still spend the majority of his time at the shrine.

"Hana-chan?" She opened the door and looked in. "Morning, baby. It's time to get up. We're going shopping, remember?" As she went in the room to shake the child awake, she saw the bed empty as well as the room. A quick assessment of the surroundings told her that the wooden box containing Inuyasha's fang dagger was open and the fang was missing.

She practically ran down the stairs, searching the bathroom, living room, kitchen, everywhere that she could think of where the child might have gone had she woken up early. She even went outside, leaving the sliding door to the house open which allowed Buyo to get out. Goshinboku was deserted. The well house shrine was open, but empty as well accept for one kitten that was curled up on the top step.

That was when she started to panic.

"Mama!" She called running back into the house. "Mama! Jii-chan!" There was a scrambling of feet and she heard doors open as the old man and elder woman came out of their rooms. "Mama! Hana's gone! She's not in her room and she's not in the house or on the shrine grounds. I can't find her. She's not answering my calls or anything."

The elder woman nodded and came out, putting a hand on her shoulders. "Shh, come on dear. We'll search the shrine grounds again and then we'll call the police if we can't find her," she said gently. "Dad, will you please call Souta? He can help us look."

The two women slipped on some shoes and walked around the shrine grounds, calling to the missing six year old.

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Kouga came to a stop just as dawn was breaking over the makeshift campground Inuyasha and the monk had set up. He was vaguely surprised that they hadn't noticed his oncoming arrival till he saw Inuyasha standing at a tree to his right with the Tetsuseiga drawn. So the mutt had sensed him and had prepared for his arrival.

"Put that damn thing away, mutt. I'm not here to fight," he muttered, glancing at the Houshi who was just starting to rise. "The taijiya sent me."

Inuyasha growled, but reluctantly sheathed his sword. "Why would Sango send _you_ to _us_?"

Kouga snarled at the hanyou. "Because I was the only messenger she had, baka. Anyway, the taijiya needs you both back at the village now."

"What for? Is something wrong?" The human grasped his staff, an anxious look over his features.

The ookami smirked. "Nah, there isn't anything _wrong_. There's something _right_, I'd say."

Inuyasha growled, his hand going to for Tetsuseiga again. "Stop playing games you mangy wolf or I'll gut you where you stand."

"Really dog breath, I'd think you'd be a little more polite to me considering I _did _save your pup's life last night."

All color left the hanyou's face and his hands fell to his sides. "Hana? How? Where?"

The smirk grew larger. "You're lucky it was me that found her in that well and not some other mangy youkai out looking for dinner. I took her to the monk's home. She's with the taijiya and the kitsune."

Inuyasha didn't bother to reply. He was already moving as fast as he could towards the village.


	3. Chapter 3

Note: I originally had a different idea as to the outcome of _To Begin Again_ when I was writing the fifth chapter and as a result, Inuyasha's fortune reflected that idea. I kinda tried to stick with it in saying that it was Inu's idea Kagome and the baby go back to her time to a doctor, but I just kinda half-assed that part to make it work. I'm thinking I'm gonna go back and change his prediction to reflect the sequel instead...

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**Scroll Three: The First Reunion**

Hours later a blur of red came to a stop at the door of the taijiya's home. The screen was pushed aside and he rushed in only to be shushed by the woman in charge. She sat on a blanket in the floor feeding the babe. To her left was the kitsune practicing his letters on a sheet of parchment. His golden eyes lifted to the woman, uncertain and begging for an answer to his unspoken question.

"Shhh," Sango warned once more and then looked to the corner on her right. "I guess this means that Kouga found you and you left him in one piece long enough to hear his message." She nodded her head to the pile of blankets in the corner. "He found her in the well last night and brought her to me. She wanted to stay awake until you got here, but she was so tired. I decided to let her sleep until came."

He moved cautiously to the blankets and pulled the top one back to reveal the dark haired head. Her thick, wavy tresses now hung around her face, flowing in a short sea of dark gray. Her eyes fluttered in her sleep, but she didn't wake. As carefully as he could, he brushed the bangs away from her forehead and lightly caressed her cheek, hardly daring to breath lest she wake and scramble away. She was bigger than he remembered, but other than that, she looked just about the same as the three year old who he had cradled to his chest years before.

But when she finally did open her eyes, those rich golden eyes so much like his own, it wasn't fear that registered there, but recognition and slight confusion. "Papa?"

"Hey."

"Papa?" She whispered again. She knew that scent, remembered it from long ago and she had memorized his face from the pictures her mother had shown her. Still, she had to ask to gain confirmation. When he nodded, she kicked the covers off and leapt at him, wrapping her tiny arms around his neck, burying her face in the folds of his haori as she crying.

His arms went around her and he kissed the top of her head, inhaling her scent that was just as calming as her mother's and just as gentle. "Shh…don't cry little one. I'm here now." He stroked her hair, gently rubbing her back and made soothing noises, trying to calm her. When she had stopped her tears she stayed latched onto him afraid to let him go.

The feeling was mutual.

When both father and daughter were satisfied that the other was not going to disappear into thin air, Inuyasha let her go and turned to the others. "You don't have anything that would fit her, do you, Sango? What about you, Shippou? You're about the same height…"

"Nuh-uh! I'm much taller than she is!" The kitsune protested.

For the first time since Inuyasha had disentangled the six year old from him, the child spoke. "No you're not."

"I am!"

"You're not!"

"Ahem," the taijiya interrupted throwing a glare in their direction, "I'm trying to get Haruko to sleep."

The kitsune stared at the ground, looking properly scolded and Hana blushed. "We're sorry, Sango-chan," they stated in unison.

"Am too."

"Are not."

This time the argument progressed in hissed whispers and the taijiya sighed, giving it up as a lost cause while the monk simply chuckled and the hanyou tried to hide a grin. The disagreement would have probably continued in the same way for much longer had the young girl not spoken those two simple words. "Prove it."

And that having been said, she stood making sure that the hem of her nightgown was short enough they could see she was standing on nothing but hardwood floor and bare feet.

"Go on Shippou, prove just how much bigger you are," Inuyasha prodded, enjoying the fact that his daughter seemed as relentless and fearless as he was.

The kitsune sent a perfected glare in his direction and stood up, right in front of the hanyou's daughter and scowled as the others started to laugh under their breaths. Despite their significant age differences, Shippou's nose came level with the top of the girl's head. He snorted in disgust. "I'm still taller than she is."

Hana giggled and put her arms around Shippou's waist. "It's okay, Shippou-nii-chan. You're still my big brother."

The kit wrinkled his nose. "Feh!"

Yep. Much too much time with the hanyou.

"Now that we've settled that, give her something to wear." Inuyasha lightly bopped him on the head and the kit scuttled off to dig out a pair of hakama and a yukata for her to change into.

Sango took her behind a screen and helped her dress in the foreign clothing and when she came out, she wore a pair of blue hakama that ballooned out in the legs and were tight around her ankles and a white haori. The woman then proceeded to braid her hair and tie it back in a blue ribbon.

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They had looked everywhere and her mother was preparing to call the police. Kagome sat on her knees before the Goshinboku with her head bowed in prayer. Souta said something to his grandfather and then walked across the courtyard to his sister. "I never thought you were one to pray to the sacred tree," he commented.

"I'm not praying. I'm trying to talk to Inuyasha," she answered simply, never opening her eyes or raising her head. "I did it once before when I was fifteen and we weren't even married then. That's how I figured out how to get back through the well after Kikyou pushed me in. Remember, when we had that big snow."

Souta nodded and knelt beside her. "You think he'll hear you?"

"I can only hope. If not, then I'm going to try to open the well," she answered quietly. "If anyone can find our daughter, Inuyasha can."

Souta nodded. "I'm sorry, Nee-chan." He sighed. "What would make her leave the house in the middle of the night? There's no sign of a forced entry or a struggle."

"If I knew that, Souta, I'd probably know where to find her." She stood up and brushed her knees of her blue jeans off. "This isn't working."

_Hana! Don't be scared! Mama's coming, baby, I swear!_

With a new found determination, she marched towards the well house.

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But Hana wasn't scared. At that moment she was walking with her father in the opposite direction. He had picked her up and had her balanced on his shoulders while she giggled over his 'super kawaii' ears and he tickled her bare feet with his claws.

"So, you're Mama told you all about me and the others, huh?" He asked, smirking a bit at the fact that Kagome hadn't tried to hide what Hana was. "How'd you get down the well? What were you doing out that late? Kami kid, you could've been hurt."

Hana shrugged and tweaked his ears in her tiny hands. "I dunno how I got here. I was in the well shrine and that baka neko, Lin, knocked my flashlight into the well. If Mama found out I was there, she'd be mad so I had to get the light but I fell and when I looked up, I was here. Then there was that wolf man who got me out and took me to Aunt Sango and nii-chan. He smelled funny."

Inuyasha laughed and was about to make a smart comment back when a familiar scent reached his nose.

"It's not very good manners to talk about your savior like that, squirt," Kouga's baritone reached them from the tree line and when Hana looked around the wolf was leaned against a tree, smirking. "I coulda left you in that well, you know."

"Shit," Inuyasha muttered. "What do you want, wolf? I ain't kicked your ass enough in the past?"

Kouga wagged his finger in the hanyou's direction. "Nuh-uh-uh…now, now, dog breath, you should be thanking me for bringing your kid to you. I'd hate to have to beat the shit out of you in front of the her."

"Really, Kouga-kun, what kind of example are you setting for our pups?" A new voice questioned from behind him and Inuyasha smirked when Ayame appeared two wolf pups trailing behind and a third in her arms.

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She didn't feel she had much of a choice if she wanted to find her daughter. Just like Souta had said, there was no sign of a forced entry or a struggle, so if her mother called the police they would likely say that Hana was simply misbehaving and hiding from them somewhere on the shrine. But she knew her daughter and she knew that, while the child was mischievous, she wouldn't pull a prank like that.

Taking a deep breath, she sat on the lip of the well and swung her legs over. With a final prayer to the kamis, she closed her eyes and shoved off, free falling towards the bottom.

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Inuyasha glared at the wolf prince, but nodded in Ayame's direction to acknowledge her. She was familiar enough with the two men to know that his ire had nothing to do with her.

Kouga smirked, not taking his eyes off Inuyasha. "I was just coming to see if dog shit felt like saying thank you. After all, I did find his pup for him."

Hana scrambled down from Inuyasha's shoulders, using her youkai agility in much the same way that Shippou used to. She stood next to her father with her hands on her hips, looking from Kouga to Ayame, not liking the way that Kouga was speaking to her papa.

The little girl on Ayame's hip batted large green eyes at her own father and then looked down at Hana. She'd been sucking on her finger, but when she spotted the other girl, she grinned and held out her hand, waving a greeting. Her brothers, however, were much more interested in what was going on between the men.

Only the children and Ayame seemed to notice the wind begin to suddenly pick up and the sky darken slightly as clouds covered the sun. Before Inuyasha could respond to Kouga's antagonizing there was a slight _pop _noise and a flash of gold light, almost as if lightening had hit the spot where Inuyasha and Hana stood. When it was gone, neither inu remained.

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Just as Kagome was about to hit the bottom of the well, there was a brilliant flash of gold light and she was engulfed in something like the time warp. Only this seemed a bit off and she would have sworn she heard two unified voices chanting, but she couldn't make out the words.

And then it was over and she stood in the center of a lush, green jungle.


	4. Chapter 4

**Scroll Four: The Second Reunion**

Inuyasha lifted Hana onto his back, instructing her to hold on so that he could have his hands free. His right hand rested on Tetsuseiga's hilt and he cautiously made his way through the lush, green-scape of the garden they'd found themselves in.

Hana dutifully clung to his shoulders, wrapping her legs as far around his waist as they would go, but she kept her head up, looking around in curiosity. It was like they were in a jungle with all the ferns and odd looking flowers that were surrounding them, but weren't there supposed to be wild animals in jungles? She didn't see any, but that may have been because her father was there and they were all afraid of him.

The muffled sound of footsteps and the sharp _crack_ of a twig had him twirling around towards one of the side paths and drawing his sword. Their assailant stopped short and squeaked in either shock of surprise before breathing his name in a questioning manner.

White puppy ears swivelled towards her, quivering slightly in anticipation that it might actually be the person he thought he saw in front of them. "Kagome?"

Hana wasn't as skeptical. She let herself fall off his back, landing with an _umph_ before running towards the woman with arms wide open. "Mommy!"

Kagome scooped the girl up in a tight hug, kissing her cheeks and hair. "Where have you been? We've been searching all over for you, young lady. I aught to ground you till the next century."

"She fell down the well."

Until that moment, she had been so preoccupied with the safe return of her daughter that she had forgotten there was anyone else there. After all, when she'd first seen him standing there she'd thought he was a figment of her imagination, a trick played on her by whoever had stranded her in the garden jungle.

"Inu...ya...sha?" Her lip trembled and she shifted the child to her hip so that she could hold the girl with one hand and wrap her free arm around his waist while his arms came around them both. "Inuyasha!" She sobbed into his haori as he kissed her temple and then her lips, using the sleeve of his haori to wipe her tears away. "How..."

He gave a quick shake of his head. "Not right now. Lets get outta here first and see if we can't find whoever brought us here _before_ they find us." His brows furrowed further in a frown when he looked around them only to see that the garden had somehow shifted without his seeing it move. Access to any and all side paths were gone and the way he'd come from was blocked. They had no choice but to continue down the path he'd initially been on. "Take Hana and stick close to me."

She set Hana down and then knelt, offering the chid her back so she could piggy back her and then grabbed a handful of his sleeve. They followed the path through the overgrowth and around a lake-sized koi pond until they came to an opening in the brick wall that surrounded the garden. When they were on the other side, he looked back, disturbed to see that the 'jungle' they'd emerged from had shrunk to a quarter of its original size.

He reached back and took Kagome's hand in his left, holding on to her but keeping her slightly behind him just in case. It seemed they were in someone's backyard, but as they had only moments before discovered, appearances could be deceiving.

In front of them, a shoji door slid open and who they could only guess was the owner of the property, stood in the opening dressed in a dark blue kimono painted to look like a koi pond, complete with reeds, water lilies and lily pads. The large, golden fish shimmered in the sunlight. Her hair was done in an elaborate style with hoops and curls and twists, decorated with ribbon and combs. It took Kagome a moment to realize who she was gawking at as she had only seen her form in stone and wearing miko battle armor. When she did recognize the woman, however, she bowed as well as she could with a child on her back.

"Midoriko-sama." Inuyasha was looking at her as if she'd lost her mind, but the woman nodded, her somber expression not changing as she descended the two steps onto a stone walk way and stood directly in front of them.

"The debates caused quit a delay, I see," the priestess commented, lifting Hana's chin with her finger, ignoring the childish growl that rumbled from the girl's throat. "Well, it couldn't be helped." When Hana made to bite at her finger, the older woman gave her a pointed, scolding look.

"What debates?" Kagome asked as politely as she could, lightly pinching Hana's leg in warning.

Manners, however, were the furthest thing from Inuyasha's mind. "Where the hell are we and why the..why are we here?" Just in time he managed to curb his tongue, a habit he'd grown out of after the well sealed. Kagome would have had his hide if he'd spoken so roughly in front of their daughter.

Midoriko heaved a heavy sigh and turned, waving for them to follow her. "You are in the Divine Realms - The City of the Gods to be exact. You were brought here because your...choices have caused an unprecedented problem for the kamis. A problem which must be worked out as soon as possible. It has already been postponed for far too long."

She led them through a corridor into a large meeting room, the same room she'd given Kikyou and Izayoi their orders in some time back. "But how? I mean, we were told that since you created the Shikon no Tama that your soul was trapped within it."

Before she could answer a side door slid open and two other women walked in. The first, obviously older than the second, was dressed in a light pink kimono decorated by rose and silver colored flowers and wore her hair loose, cascading around her shoulders and down her back. The second donned a warm brown kimono with a woodland scene imprinted on it. There was even a doe and her fawn grazing in a grassy area pictured. Her hair was held back in a brown ribbon with only a few strands slightly over her shoulder before also being tied back.

This time it was Inuyasha who was speechless. He stared at the two women with wide, unbelieving eyes. "Ki...Kikyou? Ofukuro?"

Kagome gasped, recognizing the younger of the two after a second as both women came forward and embraced Inuyasha.

"Yes, Inuyasha, I'm here," the older woman cooed, practically swallowing him with the long sleeves of her kimono as she held him tightly.

"As am I," Kikyou added, hugging him as the other woman moved towards Kagome, both ignoring the impatient looks Midoriko was giving them.

Kagome helped Hana slide from her back before the woman in pink took her hands. "Kagome, it's so wonderful to be able to meet you.," she said, her voice soft and musical and laced with emotion. "Thank you. Thank you for everything you've given my son." She leaned in and kissed her forehead before kneeling in front of Hana.

Kagome tried to say something, but she couldn't seem to find her voice, even as Kikyou stood before her, smiling sweetly. Though her thoughts did still work and she found it odd and nice that she didn't feel the familiar pang of jealousy she'd always felt before when the miko was around.

Hana had no such problems. "Who are you?" She demanded her hands going to her hips. All this strange stuff was starting to wear on her.

Izayoi laughed. "I am your Obaa-san."

The six year old shook her head and crossed her arms. "Nuh-uh, Grandma Keiko's got shorter hair and Grandma Ikoku's younger," she stated in a matter-of-fact tone.

Again the woman laughed. "I am Izayoi, your father's mother, and _that_ makes me your obaa-san." She held out her hand to the girl. "And you and I are going to go play while your parents talk to Kikyou and Midoriko-sama. How's that sound?"

Hana took a deep breath and eyed the woman suspiciously. "Are you the princess?"

"I was a princess, a long time ago." It seemed to be a sufficient enough answer for the girl and she grasped the woman's hand in her smaller one, following her to another part of the room where she could be distracted from the talk the grownups were about to have.

Once that was taken care of, Midoriko motioned for them all to have a seat on the pillows lining the dias. "You were asking how I could be here if I was supposed to be trapped within the jewel. It's simple, really. You see, the spirit is two parts - the soul and the essence. The soul is reincarnated with each death. The essence is what makes you individual from the person who carried your soul before.

"In death, the soul is reincarnated and the essence comes here, to the Divine Realms," Midoriko continued. "Except for the most wicked, such as Naraku. Beings such as he are sent directly to hell and are not allowed to reincarnate."

"You've been here before," Kikyou told them, nodding when they both gave her odd looks. "Once when you came to claim your father's sword and again to retrieve the Shikon shard. The tombs are located in a different section of the realms."

Kagome was still trying to take it all in, but Inuyasha just nodded. "So, why are we here now? What problems are you talking about?"

Midoriko sighed and rubbed her temple, as if she were trying to relieve a migraine. And she might have been. Inuyasha _was_ in the room, after all, even if he was acting behaved for the time being. She knew this was not going to go over well. "The kamis have a divine plan mapped out for each life a soul leads. And it is nice when things go exactly according to that plan, but sometimes there are deviations. The living _are_ given free will, after all. The kamis _could_ force us to be obedient to them and follow their laws, but it means so much more when a person freely chooses to do so.

"I veered from that path when I used my power to create the Shikon no Tama and sealed my soul within the jewel with the youkai I'd fought. Kikyou strayed from her path when she allowed Naraku to trick her into believing you'd betrayed her.

"But with her deviation from the divine path, you were punished, Inuyasha. It took them nearly five hundred years, but the kamis finally devised a solution. They would use the well that had stood on the shrine property for all of that time to take Kagome, Kikyou's reincarnation, to a place where she could release you. In the original plan, Kagome would have broken the seal and returned to her era where the Shikon no Tama would have been safe."

Catching on to the pattern, Kagome finally spoke. "But I didn't do what I was supposed to. I didn't figure out I could travel the well again and ended up busting the jewel. So I had to be allowed to stay to gather the shards."

Midoriko was nodding. "And then return to your world, though, by that time it was decided you would purify the jewel and destroy it for good."

"I'm so sorry, Midoriko-sama, I don't know how." Kagome fingered the pearlesque stone at her neck, looking at the pillows beneath them.

The older priestess patted her arm. "Don't worry on that right now. There's a bigger problem than whether or not the jewel still exists." She took a deep breath. "It was decreed a long time ago that your soul and Inuyasha's were meant to be together, but in the same time. You weren't supposed to be around long enough to fall in love with each other until you could be reincarnated in the same era. It was a problem that hadn't been anticipated, unfortunately, and there must be a solution decided upon immediately.

"If things had gone as they should, the well would have been sealed prior to your having a married and certainly before you had a child and never opened again. However, the guardians in charge of that particular event decided to procrastinate and by the time the kamis realized it had not been done, Hana had been born which caused yet another problem to be taken care of. Until some decision could be come to, it was ordered that we seal the well with each of you on your respective sides."

Kagome was shakng her head, her brows furrowed in concern and thought. It didn't seem fair that she should find the love of her life and have the gods say that she couldn't be with him. "What if Hana and I go to Sengoku Jidai with Inuyasha and you seal the well? We'll stay with him in that era and never go back to mine again. Can we do that?"

Kikyou shook her head, her expression melancholy. "I'm afraid it doesn't work that way. Besides, since you don't know how you're supposed to purify the Shikon no Tama, it would be dangerous for you to keep it on that side of the well, even with Inuyasha and the others protecting you. And the jewel's safety is really the main cause for concern with the gods. It always has been."

"There will be a hearing, starting tomorrow morning, to decide what will be done. I'll be here to take you to the meeting house. Kikyou and Izayoi will watch Hanna while we're before the panel," Midoriko informed them and then stood, bowing slightly. "For now, you will stay here, in the guardian's dormitory, until something can be decided. Izayoi can explain more, if you have any questions."

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Note: Have I mentioned _The Monkey King_ by Kathryn Wesley - it may have been retitled _The Lost Empire_ for the NBC mini-series. That's one source of my inspiration in the use of the trial and judging deities as well as for the look and feel of the Divine Realms. Another source of inspiration comes from _The Immortals Quartet: The Realm of the Gods_ by Tamora Pierce. I recommend them both.

Do people actually read these notes?


	5. Chapter 5

Note: I have to do some studying before I write the next chapter. I'm a well of knowledge when it comes to Green/Roman mythology, a beginner scholar on Egyptian mythology, and a fairly well informed Christian. Unfortunately, Shintoism is a complete blank.

---side note: I have a little Buddha that I bought from _Romancing the Stone_ (which I think is now _Earthbound_). He's carved out of wood and supposed to be for love (that's what the note on the bottom said). He's so adorably pudgy, I couldn't resist. Only, my mom didn't think so. Boy, did _she_ have a cow.

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**Scroll Five: The Waiting Game**

When Midoriko was gone, Kagome touched Inuyasha's arm. "You should visit with your mom. You might not have a chance like this again." She smiled and he leaned in, kissing her, emboldened by the fact that he hadn't seen her in three years.

In the corner, where Izayoi and Hana were sitting the low hum of "Ms Mary Mack" could be heard as the younger girl taught her grandmother various hand games. Inuyasha joined them and Hana stopped her game long enough to climb into his lap.

Kikyou smiled a wistful smile. "He makes a good father," she confided in a soft voice. "And a good husband. You healed him."

Kagome shook her head. "We - _we_ healed him. All I did was finish what you started." She drew her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs. "What's going to happen tomorrow."

"I don't know what the outcome will be, but I can tell you what the proceedings will be like." When Kagome nodded, she continued. "Midoriko-sama will stay with you through the hearing while Izayoi and I watch Hana. Guardians aren't allowed in Great Hall, just messengers and gods -"

"Wait, what's a guardian and a messenger? I've never heard of any of this stuff before."

Kikyou motioned to herself and Izayoi. "Izayoi and I are guardians. We are spirits who have asked to be allowed to watch over one or more family members or loved ones. When I first arrived, I petitioned the gods to be Kaede's guardian and I was granted the position. Then, when you were born, I asked again to be yours as well."

To say that Kagome was surprised to hear this would have been an understatement. This Kikyou who sat in front of her was nothing like the passive woman she'd known during their quest for the Shikon shards. But Kikyou ignored the bemused expression on her counterpart's face and kept going.

"Izayoi is, of course, Inuyasha's guardian. This is one of the guardian houses. The messengers have another house to themselves. A messenger is a spirit who has been selected by the gods to act as their go between. The messengers relate orders and wishes from the kamis to the guardians and to the other spirits in other parts of the Divine Realms. If you hadn't already figured it out, Midoriko-sama is a messenger and has been for a long time."

"What about Inuyasha's father?" Kagome asked, the question suddenly coming to her. If Izayoi were around, then perhaps so was the great Inu no Taishou. It would be wonderful if Inuyasha could finally meet his father. "Will we see him?"

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((Note: Does anyone know what Inu's father's real name is? Is it ever mentioned?))

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Not having meant to be listening in, but unable to stop herself, Izayoi spoke up. "Kin is Sesshomaru's guardian so, yes, he is here. He actually stays in this house with me, but he's off on some errand having to do with Sesshomaru. I should think that he would be back before your hearing has been completed, however." Her eyes shown with excitement when she turned them back to Inuyasha. Though she'd known it was near impossible and extremely dangerous at the time, she had hoped that they and their son could be a family while they lived. Unfortunately Ryukotsei had to end that dream.

Inuyasha _keh_'d under his breath, though inside he was excited as well. It had always seemed as if his old man hadn't cared about him and he wouldn't let anyone know he hoped it wasn't true. "Whatever. Finish what you were sayin' about the hearing."

"Alright. There'll be a panel of five deities who have been selected to represent the majority and will be present for the entire hearing. Various other messengers or gods will probably also attend to see what happens, but they won't have an participation. You'll be asked questions and the arguments for and against your being together will be heard. You'll both be given a chance to speak. Then it'll be up to the panel to decide what happens."

Kagome bit her lip and turned her head to look over at her husband who looked just as pensive as she felt. Neither was comfortable with the idea that their future would be decided by five elected gods or goddesses whom they'd defied in order to be together. The probable outcome was not looking favorable.

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That night the family lay on the cushioned dias, the sheer curtains closed around them for more privacy. Inuyasha had taken his ni-hizumi haori and spread it over the three of them as a blanket. On his left, Hana curled against his side, sleeping soundly. His right arm was wrapped around Kagome and she lay with her head on his shoulder, neither even contemplating sleep.

"I'm worried," Kagome whispered, twirling a lock of silver hair through her fingers and then huffed a short, breathy laugh. "_That's_ an understatement. I'm terrified. They're _gods_, Inuyasha. They can do _anything_ and we wouldn't have a chance of stopping them."

"Feh." Honestly, he was worried as well, but he didn't want that to show to Kagome. There was a good chance they would be sent back to their respective eras and sealed away from one another so that he would never see Kagome or Hana again. Before, when he'd lost them, there had always been the chance that they might return to him and so he'd not given up waiting. If it was decreed by the gods that they were not to be together, he honestly didn't know how he'd live.

"That ain't gonna happen." Funny, usually he was the pessimistic one.

Her mouth turned down in a frown. "You don't know that." Deciding it was best to change the subject, she sighed and relaxed against him again. "I missed you. What's happened since I've been gone?"

He was quiet for a minute, thinking. "Shippou's grown some. He's barely taller than Hana now, but he complains about being short still. He's lived with Sango and the letch since...you know."

"Why? What about our house?"

"Your house. I built it for you and I lived there 'cause you did.."

She sat up slightly, bracing herself on her elbow and touching his cheek and looking at him with sad azure eyes. "It was your home, too, Inuyasha."

"Only when you were there," he muttered under his breath and she decided it was time to change the subject again. He was never good at being sentimental or dealing with intense emotions and with all that had happened today, she was sure he'd had quite enough.

"What about Sango and Miroku?" She smiled, an expression that lit up her entire being all the way to her eyes. "How many kids do they have now? Three?"

She felt him relax again under her hands, but only barely. Whether it was from the subject matter or the fact that they were in an unknown place and he felt a need to be on guard she didn't know, but he was remaining awfully tense.

"She had one whelp, Haruko, 'bout three months ago. There was a girl, but she didn't live through the birth. That was about a year after the well closed." As if Kagome's disappearance hadn't been bad enough, Sango had been forced to deal with the still-birth of her first child after having tried so hard to conceive. For a short time, Miroku had feared he'd loose her as well, but the taijiya was stronger than they'd given her credit for and she'd pulled through well enough.

"Poor Sango," Kagome breathed, her own eyes welling with tears. He tightened his hold on her and pulled her against his chest, kissing the top of her head.

"Wolf shit's got two more runts in tow." This time it was he who changed the subject. "He and Ayame passed through yesterday, acting all cocky 'cause he was the one that found Hana in the well and took her to Sango."

"Are you two _still_ at it? It's so immature. You don't even have anything to fight about anymore." She was shaking her head and rolled her eyes.

"He's a bastard," Inuyasha argued, defensively. "He's a spoiled, good for nothing bastard."

Kagome was smiling again. "He's good for pulling little girls out of wells." It was an old feud between Kouga and Inuyasha and she knew that nothing would make them the best of friends, but it was still fun to tease him some.

"Feh, he just got lucky."

She raised up again and kissed him, still grinning. "Inuyasha, I love you."

"I love you, too." Over the years that they had been married, it had gotten easier and more comfortable to say those words. He'd only said it sparingly and with embarrassing difficulty at first, even after the wedding.

Kagome settle down again and closed her eyes, yawning as sleep finally caught up with her. Just as she was about to drift off, she heard him call her name again. "Hmmm?"

"You...Did you...in your mom's time...date?" The thought had been plaguing him for years. Kagome had been a popular girl in her school and it was no secret several guys had expressed interest in her before. An absent husband and a small child wasn't likely to change that fact.

"What!" Her voice was a harsh hiss. She sat up, quickly coming awake again, and shifted so she sat beside him, her hands pinning his shoulders. "Did you just ask me if I betrayed you?"

Too late he realized it had probably been the wrong time and place to bring it up and he swallowed. "I was just askin'."

"Why? Did you?"

"Fuck no!" This time it was he who got angry, but he didn't move from where he lay becaue he didn't want to disturb his sleeping daughter. "You know that!"

"Just like you should know that I didn't either." She poked him in the chest with her finger to emphasize her words. "I _love_ you. When I swore my oath at our wedding, I meant every word. I would never, _never_ betray you. Even if the gods say we can't be together, you're still my husband and there will never be anyone else. You got that dog boy?"

His answer was to pull her to him and capture her lips in a deep kiss. At his side, Hana's smile went unseen as she snuggled a bit closer and sighed, drifting back to sleep, thankful that her parents were back together.


End file.
